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Anthony Cirelli

Sergachev, Cirelli, Cernak Sign Eight-Year Extensions In Tampa

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Defenseman Mikhail Sergachev is staying in Tampa for nine more years. He’s signed an eight-year extension which will kick in for the 2023-24 season, per his agent Dan Milstein. TSN’s Chris Johnston reports the cap hit is $8.5MM.

That’s not it. Anthony Cirelli has also signed an eight-year extension with the team, this time worth $6.25MM per season according to Bob McKenzie of TSN. The semi-retired insider didn’t stop there. Erik Cernak has also inked an eight-year extension. His will be worth $5.2MM per season.

The team has now confirmed all three deals.

Sergachev was the first extension, and it’s a massive one. The Russian defender made an immediate impact after his trade from the Montreal Canadiens, authoring an impressive 40-point rookie year. Since then, Sergachev has been an important all-around defenseman for the Lightning during their Stanley Cup runs and is now being rewarded for it. Sergachev scored 7 goals and 38 points this season and has scored around that rate for most of his NHL career. Sergachev played 22:28 minutes per night last season and saw time on both the Lightning’s power play and penalty kill.

At max term and an $8.5MM AAV, the Lightning are banking on additional improvements from Sergachev. Sergachev is a great player right now, but $8.5MM is the sort of price tag typically assigned to lineup-anchoring number-one defensemen. Sergachev is now making more than his Norris Trophy-winning teammate, Victor Hedman, and only $500K less than the reigning Norris Trophy winner, Cale Makar. The Lightning are paying Sergachev like a number-one defenseman, and now it’s up to him to back up their faith with his play on the ice.

The second extension announced was one for Cirelli. Cirelli, who is just about to turn 25, is among the top defensive players in all of hockey. He has two top-five Selke Trophy finishes on his resume and helps the Lightning kill penalties. He’s also an important secondary scorer, with 17 goals and 43 points. Another top-of-the-line defensive center, Phillip Danault, was signed last season on a long-term deal with a $5.5MM AAV. Cirelli’s deal is in the same range as that contract.

Finally, we have the extension for Cernak. Cernak came to Tampa Bay as part of a heist of a trade, getting him from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Ben Bishop, who played only seven games in Los Angeles. Cernak has been a stay-at-home, physical top-four defenseman for the Lightning, a player who has admirably handled every challenge thrown to him by coach Jon Cooper. Cernak averaged 2:48 time on ice short-handed last season and was successful in that crease-clearing role. There’s not much offense to Cernak’s game, but the Lightning are very familiar with him and have ensured that so far highly successful marriage is extended.

On the back of all this positive news, BriseBois also announced some unfortunate as well. Joe Smith of The Athletic tweets that Cirelli and defenseman Zach Bogosian underwent shoulder surgery and will be out for the next four to six months, missing the start of the year.

Snapshots: Sharks, Cirelli, Islanders

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While there was some trade activity in recent days with goaltenders, the Sharks weren’t among the teams involved.  That might come as some surprise as the team has three NHL netminders in Adin Hill, James Reimer, and pending RFA Kaapo Kahkonen.  However, GM Mike Grier told reporters after the draft including Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News that there’s no guarantee he’ll move one of them in the coming weeks:

Everything is on the table with regards to that. But if you looked around the league during the playoffs and the regular season, you need goaltending. Having three is not the worst thing in the world.  If something comes up where we can use (the depth) to make ourselves better, we will. We’ll see how it goes, but we have three goaltenders that we like and I think that’s a good thing.

Hill and Reimer each have one year left on their contracts at $2.175MM and $2.25MM respectively and will be unrestricted free agents in 2023.  The Sharks could move one of them and in the process, give themselves a bit more flexibility this summer.  If not, this could be a repeat of 2003 when they carried three goalies to start the season when they had Evgeni Nabokov, Vesa Toskala, and Miikka Kiprusoff with the latter eventually being moved to Calgary.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • Lightning center Anthony Cirelli underwent shoulder surgery on Tuesday, relays Joe Smith of The Athletic (subscription link). He suffered an AC joint sprain on one side and a collarbone injury on the other which led to surgery being needed.  However, at this time, the team does not have a definitive timeline as to when the 24-year-old will return with GM Julien BriseBois indicating that “There’s a wide range” in terms of how long Cirelli might be out.  Cirelli had 43 points in 76 games in 2021-22 for Tampa Bay during the regular season but was limited to just eight points in 23 playoff contests with the injury likely contributing to that drop in production.
  • With Ilya Sorokin establishing himself as the starter for the Islanders, some have wondered if Semyon Varlamov could be a trade candidate this summer, especially with there being strong demand for goaltending help. However, GM Lou Lamoriello told reporters including Ethan Sears of the New York Post that his intention remains to keep the tandem intact for next season.  Varlamov carries a $5MM cap hit through next season but New York has enough cap space to round out their defense – including new deals for RFAs Noah Dobson and Alexander Romanov – without needing to create any extra flexibility.

Cirelli, Sustr Placed In COVID Protocol

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So much for Andrej Sustr’s recall to the taxi squad. The veteran defenseman and Anthony Cirelli have both entered the COVID protocol, the Tampa Bay Lightning have announced this morning.

That takes the number to six players and two coaches for the Lightning, as Sustr and Cirelli join Mikhail Sergachev, Andrei Vasilevskiy, Brian Elliott, and Pierre-Edouard Bellemare along with Jon Cooper and Rob Zettler in the protocol. Joe Smith of The Athletic reports that like the others, the two newcomers are either asymptomatic or have experienced minor symptoms to this point.

Interestingly enough, the Lightning had some good news at practice, as Nikita Kucherov and Brayden Point were both present and skating together on a line with Alex Killorn. While Tampa Bay deals with plenty of other absences, they are also getting closer to getting two key players back.

With Tampa and Montreal both adding players to the protocol today, it’s unclear if the game tomorrow is going to be played. As of now, the Canadiens are still scheduled to fly to Florida and have made recalls to fill out a lineup.

Jon Cooper, Tampa Bay Lightning Begin Extension Talks

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Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic reports that the Tampa Bay Lightning have begun contract extension talks with head coach Jon Cooper. Cooper is entering the final season of a three-year deal paying him $3.5MM per season.

A raise is undoubtedly in order for Cooper, who’s now guided the Lightning to back-to-back Stanley Cup championships. It’s an incredible achievement for Cooper, who’s already the longest-tenured head coach in the NHL. He took over the reins with 15 games left in the 2012-13 season after Guy Boucher was fired.

The Lightning have never won less than 40 games in a full season coached by Cooper, who’s now 54 years old. His coaching record stands at 384-197-53, good enough for a .647 points percentage during his time as a head coach in the league. Those numbers tie him for 42nd all-time in wins and 11th among all current head coaches in the league.

Cooper’s job could get more challenging this year. Salary cap constraints hit the Lightning hard this offseason, and they’re now a team that will be relying on their youth more than in recent years. He’s shown at multiple junctures in the past that he can get the most out of Tampa’s prospect system, helping coach underappreciated assets like Brayden Point and Anthony Cirelli to the heights of their success.

He’ll have to perform a similar act this year with names such as Ross Colton, Callan Foote, Mathieu Joseph, and other potential roster players such as Alex Barre-Boulet and Taylor Raddysh. If Cooper’s able to guide Tampa Bay to yet another Stanley Cup championship, he could become the first coach to win three straight Stanley Cups since Al Arbour won four in a row from 1980 to 1983.

Snapshots: Olympics, Eichel, Cirelli, Knyzhov

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While the Olympics are still a few months away, each participating country will have to submit their long list of eligible players on October 15th, reports Pierre LeBrun of TSN and The Athletic (Twitter link).  That list could contain 50 or more players per country with some having more than others.  The full squads will be announced at some point in January with the exact date to be determined.  At this point, the NHL and NHLPA are discussing whether to do it all in one day or spread it out to add some more buzz.  There will be an extended break in the schedule this season to accommodate both the All-Star Game and the Olympics with most teams only having a small handful of games in February as a result.

Elsewhere around the hockey world:

  • While it will ultimately cost him some money in the end, Mike Harrington of The Buffalo News argues that Sabres center Jack Eichel should ultimately go ahead with the surgery he prefers. He would be suspended, would have to pay for it out of pocket, and wouldn’t be paid while suspended but the risk is lessened since Buffalo almost certainly wouldn’t terminate his contract with how high the asking price in a trade remains.  The artificial disc replacement carries a quicker recovery time and as soon as he’s able to show that he’s healthy, it might help the trade process along which is what he ultimately wants.
  • Lightning center Anthony Cirelli left Thursday’s exhibition game early due to a lower-body injury and will be out at least one week, relays Joe Smith of The Athletic (Twitter link). The 24-year-old is coming off a quiet year offensively that saw him put up 22 points in 50 games last season.
  • The Sharks are hoping that defenseman Nikolai Knyzhov will be able to start skating next week but his availability for the start of the season is in question, notes Curtis Pashelka of The Mercury News (Twitter link). The 23-year-old had sports hernia surgery over the summer after playing through it last season.  Knyzhov still managed to play in all 56 games in 2020-21, picking up 10 points while averaging 16:45 per contest.

Yanni Gourde Could Return Ahead Of Schedule For Seattle Kraken

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The Seattle Kraken could be getting a top-six fixture back in the lineup earlier than expected. General manager Ron Francis reported in his press conference today, on the opening day of training camp for the team, that Gourde’s recovery from injury was progressing “ahead of schedule,” meaning he could be back in the lineup earlier than the previously projected early-December return.

Gourde was Seattle’s selection from the Tampa Bay Lightning in this year’s expansion draft, and he was immediately expected to take on an increased role in Seattle. Serving as arguably the best third-line center in the league behind Brayden Point and Anthony Cirelli, Gourde brings a hard-working, solid two-way game with 50-60 point upside. Widely projected as the team’s no. 1 or no. 2 center, it was revealed just days after the draft that Gourde would miss the first two months of the season after having shoulder surgery.

It should be noted that Gourde was indeed at Seattle’s first day of training camp today, albeit in a red non-contact jersey.

The 29-year-old (soon to be 30) Gourde is among one of the best undrafted talents in the NHL. He’s brought home the Stanley Cup in two of his four full NHL seasons, all with Tampa Bay. His rookie campaign in 2017-18 saw him elevated into a top-six role due to injury, and he didn’t disappoint. Despite being 26 years old at the time, his 25 goals and 64 points in 82 games was good enough to earn him some Calder votes, finishing sixth overall in voting for the trophy.

Seattle hopes that a healthy Gourde in a top-six role this season can offer similar production.

Tampa Bay Lightning Win 2021 Stanley Cup Championship

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For just the second time since the turn of the century, the NHL champion reigns for a second consecutive season. The Tampa Bay Lightning defeated the Montreal Canadiens 1-0 in Game Five at home on Wednesday night, cementing their back-to-back champion status after taking home the Stanley Cup in 2020 as well. Young Ross Colton scored the only goal of the game early in the second period and his teammates played tough defense to keep Montreal off the board for a shutout win to seal it.

The 2020-21 season was far different for the Lightning, though. In 2019-20, Tampa was a wire-to-wire favorite, leading the league in goals for and finishing second in goal differential, which earned them a share of the third-best record in the league. This year, the Lightning had their fair share of issues along the way, finishing only third in their own division and eighth overall in the league, falling to eighth in scoring and seventh in differential. Yet, in the postseason they were even better this time around than they were last year. In the 2020 playoffs, the Bolts recorded 3.08 goals for per game and 2.28 goals against per game, finished fifth in power play and penalty kill efficiency, and required extra time to win seven games. This year, Tampa Bay notched 3.26 goals for per game and led the postseason with 1.96 goals against per game, finished third and fourth respectively on the power play and penalty kill, and did not need overtime to win a single game.

Though it may not explain every difference between this season and last, it is hard to argue against the x-factor this season for the Lightning being Nikita Kucherov. Kucherov, the 2020 postseason scoring leader, missed the entire regular season after undergoing off-season hip surgery. While this cost Tampa one of the best players in the league, which could explain their regular season drop-off, the added salary cap space allowed the team to keep their championship roster together against all odds. Kucherov then returned to health in time for the playoff and again led the field in scoring – and by a wide margin. Having a fresh, energized Kucherov in the lineup was key to the Bolts’ success, especially as they faced several defensively skilled teams. While opinions differ on the integrity of how Tampa Bay managed Kucherov’s injury, the team stayed within the NHL’s rules and it led to a second consecutive title. While some may also argue that the Lightning’s back-to-back Stanley Cups came in the 2020 “bubble” playoffs and following a shortened 2020-21 season, it is difficult to see this roster not finding success under normal circumstances as well. Kucherov was followed in the 2021 playoff scoring race by four teammates – Brayden Point, Steven Stamkos, Victor Hedman, and Alex Killorn – to round out the top five, while Conn Smythe Trophy winner Andrei Vasilevskiy had the best goaltending numbers of the postseason and was clutch when it mattered most, including a shutout to clinch all four series. The likes of Ondrej Palat, Anthony Cirelli, and Ryan McDonagh were also phenomenal for Tampa.

As for the other Stanley Cup finalist, the efforts of the Montreal Canadiens were valiant and will not soon be forgotten. The team with the worst regular season record in the postseason stunned two top-five teams en route to a completely improbable and unforeseen trip to the championship round. They will get a chance at revenge soon – Tampa Bay and Montreal will be back together in the Atlantic Division again next season, alongside several other top teams.

Central Notes: Cirelli, Cernak, Mrazek, Gudas, Forsling

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Tampa Bay will have one of their top forwards back in the lineup tonight as Anthony Cirelli is expected to play against Dallas, relays Joe Smith of The Athletic (Twitter link).  The 23-year-old has missed the last six games due to an upper-body injury and was off to a big start before it occurred, notching four goals and six assists in his first dozen games.  With the Lightning carrying a minimum-sized roster, they won’t have to make a corresponding roster move to get him activated.

Meanwhile, despite leaving Thursday’s victory over Carolina early with his lower-body injury, the Lightning will also have defenseman Erik Cernak in their lineup.  He’s logging more than 18 minutes per game on their back end so far this season and his availability means that they can hold Luke Schenn down on their taxi squad, extending his waiver exemption in the process.

More from the Central Division:

  • It appears that Carolina’s wait to get their starting goalie back is almost over. GM Don Waddell told Luke DeCock of the Raleigh News and Observer (Twitter link) that the Hurricanes are targeting next Sunday’s game against Florida for Petr Mrazek to make his return from a thumb injury sustained late last month that required surgery.  Carolina has actually done relatively well without Mrazek in the lineup, winning nine of 15 games since he was injured (including the game it occurred) but having their number one back in the fold will give them a nice boost as they look to work their way up the division.
  • Florida will have defenseman Radko Gudas back in their lineup tonight versus Carolina, notes Jameson Olive of the Panthers’ team website (Twitter link). He was a late scratch on Thursday night due to an upper-body injury.  Gudas is fifth on the team in ATOI by a defender, logging just over 17 minutes per game in his first season in Florida.  Meanwhile, they’ll be without Gustav Forsling due to a lower-body issue.  The early-season waiver claim has been held off the scoresheet in eight games so far this season.

Tampa Bay’s Anthony Cirelli Out Week-To-Week With Upper-Body Injury

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The Tampa Bay Lightning announced the team will be without second-line center Anthony Cirelli for a while as he will be out week-to-week with an upper-body injury. That’s a tough blow for a team that recently lost Steven Stamkos, who was put on the COVID Protocol list Friday.

Cirelli went down during the middle of the third period Thursday against the Florida Panthers and never returned. The injury didn’t look good and head coach Jon Cooper said at the time that “it didn’t look great when he came off.”

The forward has played well for the Lightning this season with four goals and 10 points in 12 games so far this year. He had 16 goals and 44 points last season in 68 games and was fourth in voting for the Selke Trophy. He is a top penalty killer for the team, another blow that the Lightning will have to deal with.

The team for now, is expected to promote Tyler Johnson to center the second line alongside both Mathieu Joseph and Blake Coleman, while Alex Killorn is penciled onto the first line to replace Stamkos.

Of course, the team is already without Nikita Kucherov (hip) and center Mitchell Stephens (lower-body injury). Both are out indefinitely.

Anthony Cirelli Re-Signs With Tampa Bay Lightning

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The Tampa Bay Lightning have signed their last key restricted free agent, inking Anthony Cirelli to a three-year contract. The deal will carry an average annual value of $4.8MM and keeps Cirelli under contract through the 2022-23 season. Pierre LeBrun of The Athletic tweets out the full details, noting that it is the exact same deal that Mikhail Sergachev signed earlier this offseason:

  • 2020-21: $900K salary + $1.5MM signing bonus
  • 2021-22 $3.3MM salary + $1.5MM signing bonus
  • 2022-23: $7.2MM salary

When the Lightning walked to the podium to select Cirelli in the middle of the third round back in 2015, they never could have imagined what he would turn into five years later. At that point, he had only one year of OHL hockey under his belt, and though the Oshawa Generals were successful, he certainly wasn’t the one most fans were watching. Michael Dal Colle, the fifth-overall pick from 2014 was on that team and led the Generals all the way to the Memorial Cup, scoring 31 points in 21 playoff games. Cirelli scored only two goals in the playoffs for Oshawa, but he was already showing the elite work ethic and defensive ability that would become his calling card.

When Dal Colle was traded to the Kingston Frontenacs partway through the 2015-16 season, it was Cirelli who took over the captain’s “C” for Oshawa. He would also get his first taste of AHL action at the end of that season, suiting up three times for the Syracuse Crunch. Cirelli would then go on to win another OHL Championship and a World Junior silver medal in 2016-17, never losing that shutdown defensive mindset in the process.

Now, just two full seasons into his NHL career, everything he did for Oshawa (and Erie, and then Syracuse) he is doing for the Lightning. The 23-year-old center is one of the very best defensive players in the entire league, allowing almost no production from opponents when he is on the ice. He’s married that defensive acumen with improving offensive ability that resulted in 44 points in 68 games this season. Though his offense took a backseat to the superstar forwards on Tampa Bay in the playoffs, there’s little doubt how valuable Cirelli is to the team.

At a $4.8MM cap hit, he’ll continue to be a key part of the team’s lineup for the next three years. That number already likely doesn’t live up to the value Cirelli brings and if his development continues it could be a laughably low amount very soon. The bridge deal will also leave him as a restricted free agent one last time, meaning the Lightning will have a chance to ink a big, long-term deal with Cirelli in 2023.

How can they fit another high cap hit in? Nikita Kucherov’s injury is providing some relief, but this number is high enough that the Lightning will likely need to make another move before the season begins. CapFriendly tweeted out several explanations of how they’re even allowed to file a contract like this, which takes Tampa Bay nearly $12MM over the cap ceiling for the time being. Their projected cap hit is nearly $2.2MM over the $91MM that the team will be allowed to build assuming Kucherov goes on long-term injured reserve, meaning either some creative moves or a trade will be necessary in the coming weeks.

Still, even if it costs the Lightning one of their other bloated contracts, getting Cirelli locked up at a reasonable number is some strong work from GM Julien BriseBois. The team’s younger core of Kucherov, Cirelli, Sergachev, Brayden Point, and Andrei Vasilevskiy are now all locked in for at least the next two seasons, with the veteran stars—including Victor Hedman, who only turned 30 a few days ago—all still on workable numbers.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images

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